Chapter 72

At the Zhehe Pavilion, which was said to be a place where immortal cranes often resided, Xu Fengnian and his group dismounted to rest, but they did not even see a single mountain pheasant. Instead, there were six or seven female Daoist nuns surrounding a young gentleman with a dignified demeanor. He wore a Daoist robe and carried a divine Xiaoshao-style peach wood sword, which exuded a fresh fragrance. On his head, he wore a much-criticized Xiaoyao headscarf adorned with intricate cloud patterns, and particularly, two long sword tassels hung from the back of the hat, fluttering as he moved. However, the old grandmasters and senior Daoists unanimously believed that it was inappropriate, and not any young Daoist had the courage to wear it. The female Daoist nuns were beautiful and delicate, their voices like the chirping of birds, which made the young Daoist appear even more unrestrained and free-spirited. This elegant young Daoist was reclining on a long bench in the pavilion, with several female Daoist nuns peeling chestnuts and feeding them into his mouth. Such a scene of a celestial abode would certainly make the bandits like Old Meng think they were seeing the grace of immortals.

Seeing Shu Xiu, the young Daoist from Qingyang Palace was initially delighted. Then, upon seeing the white cat and the white dress of Yu Youwei, he was taken aback. When he saw Jiang Ni, who had just jumped off the carriage, his eyes were filled with admiration that he could not hide. He gently pushed away the female Daoist nun, stood up, and slung the peach wood sword around his waist. He walked out of the Zhehe Pavilion first, elegantly bowed, and bowed deeply, then straightened up and smiled at Xu Fengnian, saying slowly, "I am Wu Shizhen from Qingyang Palace..."

Xu Fengnian would not give this Daoist the chance to boast. He had Lu Qiantang clear the way and walked straight to the Zhehe Pavilion, rudely interrupting, "Wu Shizhen? What relation is the Qingcheng King Wu Lingsu to you?"

The female Daoist nuns, who had initially been quite fond of Xu Fengnian, were now displeased. In terms of appearance, the young prince, who did not resemble his father Xu Xiao but bore a striking resemblance to the empress, was a rare beauty. If not for the four years of travel and sword practice that had tempered him, he would have been even more appealing to women. Of course, he was more impressive than Wu Shizhen. Although Xu Fengnian was now more robust, he had a more refined and ethereal aura, which only the White Fox-faced girl could surpass. The female Daoist nuns, though surprised by the handsome and wealthy man in front of them, were accustomed to Wu Shizhen's refined and elegant demeanor. They found Xu Fengnian's straightforwardness hard to tolerate and immediately frowned. Who was this arrogant young man to dare call the Qingcheng King by his name?!

Wu Shizhen glanced at Lu Qiantang and Shu Xiu, who were standing in a strategic position. He could tell that Shu Xiu was a gentle and innerly alluring vixen, but Lu Qiantang's red-dawn great sword seemed to outweigh ten peach wood swords combined.

Wu Shizhen showed no sign of panic, still smiling and calm, and said, "The palace master is indeed my father."

Xu Fengnian sneered, "So you have a powerful father. The Qingcheng King sounds impressive. In our dynasty, there are only two non-imperial princes. You were born into a good family."

The female Daoist nuns were all enraged, whispering and murmuring, clearly provoked by Xu Fengnian's words. Wu Shizhen, being the son of the Qingcheng King, merely smiled lightly and said, "From your accent, you are from Liangzhou?"

Xu Fengnian proudly nodded. As a notorious young master of Beiliang, he didn't need to pretend; he naturally exuded a domineering aura that made people's hair stand on end. He pointed at Wu Shizhen, who had been smiling all along, and commanded, "My father is not much worse than the Qingcheng King. He is a general who holds the military seal and has accumulated a great fortune over the years. I, the young master, find the mountains of gold and silver at home too much to look at. I've heard that there are immortals on Qingcheng Mountain, so I want to see if I can buy some longevity techniques to live a hundred more years. If it works, I'll give you a million taels of silver or even ten thousand catties of gold. At the very least, I want to get some high-level manuals on the art of the bedchamber from Qingyang Palace. You, Daoist Wu Shizhen, being the son of the enfeoffed Wu Lingsu, should lead me to the top of Qingcheng Mountain to Qingyang Palace. If your father doesn't have any real skills to be a king, I'll tear down Qingyang Palace!"

Wu Shizhen squinted and glanced at Wei Shuyang, who was dressed in the attire of a Nine Dous of Daoism, and said, "Please follow me up the mountain. I am not boasting, but Qingyang Palace has many rare Daoist texts on breathing techniques for longevity. Since you have brought a senior Daoist of the Nine Dous, he can verify it."

Xu Fengnian arrogantly said, "Then why don't you lead the way? If I'm satisfied, the mountains of gold and silver are yours."

Wu Shizhen led a group of furious female Daoist nuns on foot, leaving the bamboo reclining chair in the corner of the Zhehe Pavilion unused.

Riding on his horse, Xu Fengnian tapped Wu Shizhen's head with the sheath of the Xiudong sword and asked, "Wu Shizhen, tell me about your father's immortal powers."

Wu Shizhen, walking with a light step, was already sweating and panting as he answered, "My father was originally a hermit on Dragon Tiger Mountain's Alchemy Rock. Later, he achieved great success in alchemy and descended the mountain to pray for the eradication of a plague and help the people. On the banks of the Yangtze River, he met the Fire Master Wang Tianjun. Seeing my father's pure Daoist heart, Wang Tianjun bestowed upon him the Great Dao of Divine Thunder, which can command thirty-six ghosts and spirits. He then traveled to the 22nd Grotto-Heaven of the White Water Marsh, where he helped a seriously ill old woman, who turned out to be the Heavenly Mother of Lightning. She granted him the 'Five Thunder Celestial Book of the Divine Xiaoshao,' which can summon wind and rain and call forth lightning with a wave of the hand. My father, having received the mandate of heaven, suddenly understood and could see ghosts and spirits reciting spells and drawing talismans, commanding lightning and chasing away evil spirits! He was fortunate to be summoned by His Majesty the Emperor, who was greatly pleased and thus enfeoffed him as the Qingcheng King."

Xu Fengnian was somewhat shocked. Despite Wu Shizhen's heavy breathing, his story was told with great fluency and righteousness, clearly rehearsed many times.

Wei Shuyang smiled slightly, neither confirming nor denying. As a senior Daoist of the Nine Dous, he was well aware of the oily aspects of such immortal legends. Places like Dragon Tiger Mountain and Wudang Mountain, except for their founding patriarchs, never claimed to have encountered immortals. Such stories would be laughed at if told!

Jiang Ni, who had heard this from inside the carriage, believed it without doubt, marveling at the wonders. As for Wu Shizhen, she didn't even give him a second glance, unaware of his appearance or demeanor.

The old sword god Li Chunjiang, who was sniffing his feet, seemed to be repelled by his own smell, and waved his hand, saying irritably, "Don't listen to this overindulged little Daoist's nonsense. It's all lies."

Jiang Ni, who held immortals and deities in high reverence, was nervous and said, "Don't talk nonsense. We're not far from Qingyang Palace. Be careful, or a bolt of lightning might strike you!"

The old man laughed, "So what if it strikes? I'll shatter it with one sword."

Jiang Ni, on edge, angrily said, "Do you have to brag so much? Do you have to brag so much?!"

The old man chuckled, "Don't worry, listen on. This Xu Fengnian wouldn't let this little Daoist boast endlessly."

Sure enough, Xu Fengnian, acting like a reckless and ignorant young master from a powerful family, burst the bubble and slapped him hard, saying, "Who knows if your father Wu Lingsu ever met the Fire Master or the Heavenly Mother of Lightning? Wu Lingsu can say whatever he wants. But I've heard that Wu Lingsu concocted the 'Celestial Treasure Scripture of the Divine Xiaoshao' to distance himself from Dragon Tiger Mountain and the Orthodox Unity Sect, trying to establish his own sect on the auspicious land of Qingcheng Mountain. Unfortunately, the incense offerings were pitifully few. Later, someone recommended Wu Lingsu, saying that while his Daoist skills were mediocre, his skills in the art of the bedchamber were exceptional. Thus, he was summoned to the palace by the Emperor. Wu Lingsu was savvy and gave the Emperor both elixirs and secret manuals, and flattered him by saying that the heavens have nine layers, with the Divine Xiaoshao being the highest, and its leader is the eldest son of the Jade Emperor, who is the current reincarnation of the Emperor. This flattery was quite skillful, but it's said that the Daoist patriarchs of Dragon Tiger Mountain and Wudang Mountain all called Wu Lingsu 'Wu the Big Braggart.' How dare a king and a palace like this not respond to such insults? What kind of king is he?"

Yu Youwei giggled.

Wei Shuyang, playing along with the young prince, pretended to be cautious and timid, and corrected softly, "Young master, Qingcheng Mountain is the fifth Grotto-Heaven."

Xu Fengnian grunted, "The fifth or sixth, what's the difference?"

Wu Shizhen's facial expression was stiff, but he maintained a smile, showing no anger or impatience. He pushed away a female Daoist nun who was wiping his sweat, wiped it himself, and looked ahead, where the palace rooftops and eaves were already visible. Wu Shizhen, who had never experienced any ill treatment since birth, smiled and said, "Young master, we are about to reach Qingyang Palace."

Then he instructed one of the slightly older nuns, "Qingshui, go ahead and inform Qingyang Palace that we have distinguished guests."

The nun, swaying her alluring waist, hurriedly ran off.

Wu Shizhen glanced at Yu Youwei, who was holding an ugly girl.

Xu Fengnian, seemingly unperturbed, thought that this young Daoist had remarkable self-control, determined to close the door and deal with him later.

Qingyang Palace was not the Beiliang military, and after living as immortals on Qingcheng Mountain for so long, they truly believed they were invincible. They had no idea that a hundred light cavalry were approaching from the mountain below.

Xu Fengnian, seeing the front hall of Qingyang Palace in the distance, squinted and said, "Wu Shizhen, has anyone ever called you 'Wu the Little Braggart'?"

Wu Shizhen, perhaps having endured a lifetime of hardship, was no longer bothered by a moment of it. He had already cursed this ignorant young master from Beiliang a hundred times in his heart, waiting to properly deal with him once they entered Qingyang Palace. Since they were about to see his father, the Qingcheng King, Wu Shizhen's smile became even more radiant. He looked up and said, "Wu the Little Braggart? I've never heard that before."

Xu Fengnian pointed at Shu Xiu with the Xiudong sword and laughed, "If there's any high-level art of the bedchamber that meets my standards, see that woman? She's an expert in seduction. She's a bit older, but she's very skilled. I guarantee you, this Daoist, you'll only envy the mandarin ducks and not the immortals. What kind of immortal are you! I don't mind giving this Shu lady to you. We get along well, and I'm not a stingy person."

Shu Xiu's body visibly trembled.

Wu Shizhen glanced at Shu Xiu's back, confirming that she was indeed a much more alluring beauty than the female Daoist nuns in the palace. Looking at the curve where she touched the saddle, she was truly well-endowed. But if I let you into my Qingyang Palace, you've insulted my father, the noble Qingcheng King Wu Lingsu, calling him 'Wu the Big Braggart,' and you've called me 'Wu the Little Braggart.' Is one beauty enough? What about the others?

Xu Fengnian, finally seeing Wu Shizhen's moment of triumph, was somewhat impressed. With Wu Shizhen's patience and disguise, he was far more cunning than most of the young masters in Beiliang.

Xu Fengnian muttered to himself, "Alright, let's see if we can trample Qingyang Palace first."

{Piaotian Literature}